Building construction



Aug. 16, 1932. D. D. wHlTAcRE BUILDING CONSTRUCTION Filed June 22, 1929 2 Sheets-'Sheet 1 Fig. 5.:

INVENTOR DONALD D. WHITACRE. BY

A TQRNEY! Filed June 22, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 35 INVENTOR DONALD D. WHITACRE.

ATTORNEY;

Patented Aug. 16, 1932 UNITED STATES DONALD D. WHITACRE, onwAYNnsB'UR-G, oHIo BUILDING CONSTRUCTION I Application filed June 22, 1929. Serial; No. 372,844.

This invention relates to building construction, particularly composite brick andtile Wall construction andl more particularly to header backer tile blocks which are disposed behind and bonded with face brick to kgive body and strength to a Wall.

am familiar With the vEisemann Reissue, Patent No. 17,137 reissued November 20th, 1928 and my invention` constitutes an improvement over the construction disclosed in that patent. c

it is among the objects of my invention to. provide a back-up block of relatively great str-ength and light Weight which can be easily setin the wall and Ywhich Will lend itself to rapid and economical construction. Another object is to provide a back-up block having that portion adjacent the bricks so shaped that the bricks may be easily handled as they are placed in the Wall adjacent the back-up blocks. A further object is to provide blocks, which when bonded with face brick, will create numerous dead air cells Within `the Wall Wherebygreat insulating value is given the Wall. A Wall constructed according to my invention is relatively impervious to the passage of moisture. Another object of my' invention is to providev blocks Whose dimensions correspond to brick lengths or multiples thereof and Whlch may be easily broken into units corresponding to brick lengths or Y halves of brick lengths.

A further object is to provide blocks which may all be extruded from one die so that all of the blocks necessary tobesupplied to any given construction may be of the same size and shape. By this provision contractors and builders need only have'on hand onel kind and shape of tile block, which in their 40 original shape or in theirreadily divisible fractions, constitute all of the tile blocks necessary to fill in the door and Window jambe, make the corners and otherwise completely back-up the face brick Wal-l. Another' object is to reduce the Weight of the back-up blocks eliminating one of the longitudinally extending Webs or shells While still reta-in ing the Vstrength of the bloc-k and providing a large and serviceable bonding area be- 59 tween the blocks and header brick.

' outer exposed facci-of the block asla'rd in the A further object is to arrange laterally extending double Webs spaced apart sulistan-fV tially the thickness of a mortar joint of which the pairs are so arrangedthatthe blocks may be divided intof halves or quarters byifracturing them between adjacent Webs of apeir. A further object is to provide Wedge receiving grooves on the inner faces `of the Ablocksin which Wooden Wedges may be inserted for receiving nailing strips, as shown in the.- Swanson Patent No. 1,486,935, which groovesare arranged with relation to the double Webs of the blocks whereby` fracture of the blocks is facilitated andfwliereby nailing'- strips or the like may be'readily secured to the inner face of the wall. Ay still further ob' tis to provide an end-set and stepped bac yup tile having a' longitudinal dimension in the Wall equal to the length of two bricks plus a mortar joint, and having an. overall height and Width .equal-to the length of a brick whereby each block and fraction thereof hasjthersame lateral cross-section and universal adaptation and conformity to brick` dimension.V

-Otherrobjects will appear `from the Vvfollowing description of avpreferredform'o my invention, reference being had to the faecompanying drawings; The essential characteristics are summarized in claims.

In the draWingsFig.g1 is a verticalqper'- spective view taken at the end of thewall; Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken inv a plane parallel to the plane` in Figplg. Fig. 3'is a horizontal section j taken 1 along the broken plane 3 3 of Fig. .1.; Fig. 4 is a horizontal section taken along the broke-n plane-Hof Fig. 1 Fig. 5 is* a vertical section takenalong the plane 5-5 of Fig. 1;- Fig.- 6 is-a perspective of one ofthe back-up blocks showing thev Wall Vand illustrating the arrangement of grooves for Wooden" Wedges; and Fig. .7 is `a cut-away perspective view of the wall from the brick side and Figs. 8 and19. illustrate modified forms of the block illustrated in; the pre-ceding; figures. f

Referring particularly to Fig. 1,51 illustrate a Wall built of header bcertilebloclc's, 1a and/face brick 2. The face brick are preferably arranged'in stretcher courses between o header courses in the usual manner. The header bricks extend into the tile part of the wall and are bonded between adjacent tile blocks. As illustrated and fully described in the Eisemann reissue patent, mentioned above, each tile block is stepped as at 3 and Qadjacent :pairs of tile blocks bond between 'them 'the inner ends of the header bricks.

Likewise adjacent rows of header brick bond between them and pairs of header tile blocks.

The tile blocks 1 are designed to be endset in the wall, that is, the voids of the blocks laid in they wall extend vertically. Refer-r ness of the wall, including both brick and tile,

is substantially 12 inches. The block 1 has an outer shell 4 placed on the inside face of th-e wall end shells 5 and 6 and laterally extending pairs of webs 7 spaced apart the thickness of a mortar joint extending from the outer shell toward and to the brick as laid in the wall. An inner shell 8 is formed integrally with the double webs 5 and the end shells 5 and 6 and are spaced inwardly an inch or more from the ends of thevwebs and spacedaway from the stretcher brick in the wall.

Referring particularly to Figs. 2 and 4, it will be seen that the inner shell 8 is spaced away from the brick so that between the shell 8 and the stretcher brick are formed a series of major air pockets 10 and minor air pockets 11, which pockets are closed at the top and bottom Vby the header bricks. Thus between the stretcher-brick and the wall 6 of vertically adjacent tile blocks, are formed closed air pockets which lend insulating value to the wall.

Referring also to Fig. 7 it will be appreciated that when the stretched bricks are laid the-mason may grasp the bricks and his hands may extend into one or the other of the maj or air-pockets 10 without scraping his knuckles and fingers against the tile blocks and'he may thereby more easily handle the bricks and set them on their mortar beds. I regard it as one of the outstanding advantages of my inventionk that thejextension of the webs and shells beyond the inner wall both provide deadV air cells back of the stretcher bricks and'also facilitate the laying of the bricks. In Fig. 9 major air cells 10A of greater dimension further facilitate the layingv of brick.

As mentioned above, the blocks 1 have longitudinal dimension as laid in the wall equal to the length of two brick plus a mortar joint and I space the laterally extending double webs in such position that the blocks may be split between adjacent webs to divide them into halves orquarters.' Thus the half blocks will be substantially 8. inches long and the iraaoo quarter blocks substantially 4 inches long. As illustrated in Fig. 3, the longitudinal dimension of the blocks as laid in the wall equal substantially the width of four header brick plus' three mortar joints and as will appear from Fig. 5, the quarter portion of a block is jubsltantially .equal to the width of a header ric A Referring particularly to Fig. 5, it will beseen that as the blocks are laid in the wall, there will be a'continuous vertical alignment of webs and shells between overlapping blocks by reason of the fact that the double webs are spaced apart the thickness of a more tar oint. Thus forthe sake of illustration, I have shown at the top course in Fig. 5, and at the left end of the course a half block 15 lying above a full block 16 and lying adjacent the full block 1'?. It will be seen that the adjacent end walls of the blocks 16 and 17 are in substantial vertical alignment with the middle adjacent webs of full block 1G. .In the same ligure in the lower courses I illustrate a quarter block 18 lying adjacent a half block 19 and lying above a half block 20. It will be noted that trie vertical web and shell alignment is maintained and that closures are readily formed while maintaining a ruiming bond in the wall.

To facilitate the fracture of the blocks into halves or quarters and also to provide for nailing strips and the like, I provide undercut grooves 25 laterally adjacent pairs of webs 7. I prefer that wedges, as disclosed in the Swanson patent mentioned above, be used, and as described in that patent those wedges may comprise oppositely slidable wooden members 2G and 27 which may be locked inthe grooves when moved relative to each other. The function and arrangement of the wedges is of course entirely apart from this invention, but the arrangement of the grooves with relation to the spaced webs is vnovel and has a great utility, particularly in fracturing the blocks into halves or quarters.

As illustrated particularly in Fig. 6, it will be appreciated that the zones of fracture as at 30 and 31, are remote from the exterior portions of the lock.v Thus the Zone of frac- 7 ture 30 in the inner shell 8 is spaced inwardly from the ends of the webs 7 and when the block is broken the webs 7 reinforce the shell on opposite sides of the fracture and prevent chipping or crazing adjacent the fracture. The fracture at the Zone 81 occurs in the bottom of the groove 25 and adjacent the juncture between the webs 'l' and the wall 4 so` that the face of the block is protected from chipping or crazing. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that after the block has been broken, the roughened surface alon the plane ofv cleavage may be chipped oil with a trowel back to the plane of the webs without chipping the faces of the webs.

V'illu Aet -A- s the brick and tile are built into the wall, it will be appreciated byf referring partici larly'to Fig. i7, that the stretcher brick, as mentioned above, may be readily laid adjacent and in Contact vwith the exposedinner ends of the webs 7 and that particularly the juncture of the webs with the inner sl'iellS provides'a large and satisfactory mortar bed either between adjacent tile blocks Yorbetween tile blocks and header brick. It will be seen that my construction lends itself to economical use particularly in that the tile blocks may be readily handled and fractured by the masons and that both the brick and tile may be easily laid in the wall.

In Figs. 8 and 9 are illustrated modifications of the blocks. In Fig. 8 the block 1B has the same overall dimension and general characteristics, but the lateral webs lie in the mid-portion of the quarter portions. Kerfs 35 are preferably provided to facilitate fracture. The webs extend beyond the inner shell to form air pockets and facilitate laying the bricks as described above. Such block when laid in the wall in quarter or half running bond have their Webs and shells in vertical load bearing alignment.

The block 1A of Fig. 9 is similar in all respects to the block l described above, except that two pair of double webs have been eliminated. The block has thus the advantage of lightness, and the pockets 10A facilitate the laying of brick as mentioned above. For a given thickness of webs and shells, this block is somewhat weaker than the block l, and of course the block 1A cannot be fractured into quarters. I contemplate certain instances when this block may advantageously be used.

Modifications of my invention may occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit or major precepts thereof, and while I have illustrated and described a preferred form, I do not care to be limited in the scope of my patent other than by the claims appended hereto.

1. A back-up tile block for brick and tile Walls having inner and outer shells and laterally extending webs joining said shells and having extensions projecting beyond the shell of the block to space it from the brick facing part of the wall.

2. A back-up tile block for brick and tile walls having inner and outer shells and lateral vertically extending webs joining said shells and having at least one integral extension projecting normally beyond the in- Yner shell of the blo-ck engageable with the brick facing part of the wall for spacing the said inner shell from said brickV facing.

3. An end-set back-up Vtile block for brick and tile walls having inner and outer shells of different height and laterally extending webs with stepped end surfaces joining said shells and having extensions projecting beyondthe inner and shorter shell of the block to lpace it from the brick facing part ofthe wa 4. .A back-up tile-block having frontand back shells as positioned in the wall and havinga plurality of pairs of laterally extending vvebs spaced from each other the thickness of a mortar joint joining the front and back shells of the block and extending beyond the back shell ofthe block tov form spaced projections engageable with the brick part of the wall. l y 5. yA back-up tile block having a relatively `high frontshell and a relatively low back shell `as positioned in the Wall and having a plurality of pairs of laterally extending webs spaced `vfrom each' other the `thickness of a Vmortar joint and joiningthe front'and back shells of the block-and havingY stepped ends midway between shells and extending beyond the back :shell of the block to form spaced proj ectionsengageable .withv the brick part of the wall.` 6. A backing tileffor composite brick. and tile walls having frontk and back shells'and end shells, said block also havingflaterally extending webs lying parallel to the. end shells and formed integrally with the front and back shells, said webs and end shells projecting beyond the back shelland forming projections forspacing` .the back shell from the'brick part of the wall. Va 7 'A backing tile for composite brick and tile walls having a longitudinal dimension equal to the length of two brick plus a mortar joint and having a gross lateral dimension equaltovone brick and having front and back shells spaced from each other substantially less thankthe length of `a brick andv having parts extending beyond the kback shell and normal thereto to a point a brick length from the face of the front shell.

4ico

8. A backing tile forcomposite brick and Y tile Walls having a longitudinal dimension equal to substantially an even multiple of the length of a brick and having a gross lateral and vertical dimension equal to an evenvmultiple of the length ofa brick and having front and back shells spaced from each other substantially less than the vlength. of a brick and havingparts extending beyond the back shell to a point a brick length from the'face ofthe front shell. v,

9. A backing tile for composite brick and tile walls having gross longitudinal vertical and lateral dimensions equal to substantially evenmultiples ofthe length of a brick and having a stepped horizontal surface and having a front shell of full height and back shell of reduced height spaced from each other substantially less than the length of a brick; and having parts vextending-beyond the back shell to a point a brick length from `the face of theV front shell for engagement .'withfthe brick part of the wall. Y v .-1

10.'A stepped back-upvv tile for bonding with header bricks of a composite brick and tile wall which when placed in the wall is as long as two brick plus a mortar joint, has an overall width equal to the length off a brick and an overall height equal to the length of a' brick, said block having end shells andl at least a centrally disposed pair of laterally extending webs spaced from each other the thickness of a mortar joint and an inner shell joining said webs and end shells and spaced away from the inner ends thereof, whereby the block may be fractured between said webs to form two blocks, each having three overall dimensions equal to substantially the length of a brick.

ll. A backeup tile block having an inner shell and an outer shell and having laterally extending webs joining said shells and proj ecting beyond the inner shell, the outer shell being` grooved adjacent its juncture with said webs and opposite the space between said webs whereby the block may be fractured between said webs at the base of the groove in the outer shell and between the projecting parts of the webs in the inner shell.

12. An end-set back-up tile block having an inner shell and an outer shell and 4having centrally disposed laterally extending double webs joining said shells and spaced apart the thickness of a mortar joint and projecting beyond the inner shell, the outer shell being grooved adjacent its juncture with said webs and opposite the space between said Vwebs whereby the block may be fractured between said webs at the base of the groovein the outer shell and between the projecting parts of the webs in the inner shell to form sepa-V rate equal parts.

13. An end-set back-up tile block for com# posite brickrandV tile walls Vadapted to be bonded with the inner ends of header brick, said block having a plurality of pairs of laterally extending webs in which the webs of a pair are spaced apart the vthickness of a mortar joint, the pairs being spaced from each other a distance which permits each pair to bond a separate header brick, saidblock having an inner shell joining said webs and within the inner ends thereof whereby the inner ends of the webs engage the stretcher brick and form dead air cells defined by the bricks, the inner ends of the webs, and the inner shell of the block.

14. A back-up ytile block for brick and tile walls having an inner shell adapted to be placed near but spaced from the brick facing part of the wall and having an outer shell exposed on the back face of the wall and being higher than the inner shell by substantially one-half the thicknessV of the facing brick, said block having a laterally extending portion joining said inner and-outer shells and formed integral therewith and forming on one surface of the block astepped portion between' the inner and outer "shells, at least one of said laterally extending portions` of the block having ran integra-l extension projecting beyond the inner face ofthe inner shell of the block and adapted to contact with the brick facing part of the wall and spacing the inner shell of the block therefrom.

In testimony whereof Ihereunto affix my signature this 5th day ofJ une, 1929. l DONALD D. WHITACRE. l 

